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Nick Ayers will not become White House chief of staff, announcing his decision earlier today, dealing President Trump a setback in his effort to find a successor to John Kelly.

Ayers, a Republican operative who serves as chief of staff to Vice President Pence, instead plans to leave the administration at year’s end to work for a pro-Trump super PAC.

Trump intends to make a decision on a new chief of staff by the end of the month, when Kelly also plans to leave his post.

Ayers was widely seen as the frontrunner to succeed Kelly, but he could not come to an agreement with Trump about the terms of his service.

Trump wanted Ayers to make a long-term commitment to the job.

But the 36-year-old aide was unwilling to commit to anything more than an interim role, expressing a desire to return to his home state of Georgia with his wife and children.

Ayers later announced his move in a Twitter post.

The surprise decision throws Trump’s search for a new top aide into limbo as he enters 2019 confronting an intensifying investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election, as well as a Democratic House majority eager to do battle with Trump.

Trump is now said to be picking from a list that includes outgoing House Freedom Caucus Chairman Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), White House budget director Mick Mulvaney and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.

Other reports have indicated Trump may consider people from outside the administration for the role.

Trump announced on Saturday that Kelly would exit as chief of staff by the end of the year, ending a tumultuous 17-month tenure during which Kelly lost his ability to impose order in a chaotic White House.

Trump’s next chief of staff will be his third in roughly three years in office, a sign of the high rate of staff turnover that has plagued the administration for months.

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